What Canada food & beverages stands for? And what did the Danes say? The story of TASTE OF CANADA

When in export, nothing beats having your feet on the ground, your products and samples in the hand. Add a wingwoman/man at your side, getting you through the right door and infront of the right person and you of to a good start.

Talk less - sample more

if my product is good, it will do

most of the work for me...

The TASTE OF CANADA program initiated in 2020, was the brainchild of the Canadian Embassy in Copenhagen, Denmark and opened with a series of online sessions. Critical sessions getting the basics in place, before sending either products or people accross the Atlantic Ocean. Basics such as logistics, custom fees and local pricing calculated in local currency must be in place, before you reach out to new clients in new markets.

Copenhagen, Denmark is a unique gateway to the region and the Copenhagen food scene has become on of the worlds pillars of top gastronomy.

Why constructive feedback from the peers of Copenhagen can have an impact all around the world. Why such feedback might also be the new twist to your story, that gets you those extra 10 minutes with your biggest and oldest client back home.

All customers needs to be inspired and it is your task to do so - sometimes you need to leave home base, to bring back new energy and knowledge.

Why it made sense for Canadian producers of top quality and branded food & beverage products to come to Copenhagen and present their creations, tell their stories and sample their products?

Copenhagen is a very small city, when compared with the giants and well established food cities like Paris, London, New York and Tokyo.

The compact size makes it perfect for an effective and action packed schedule of networking, matchmaking and sampling to the best of the best.

Søren Falck Hansen and I have worked intensively with the local Canadian Trade Commission. With the support of Canadian official export programs been able to offer this unique service and concept.

Mixing what seems like a unusually blend of products and people from different industries might make no sense on day 1, but when reaching day 2 and day 3 the network was in place and everybody involved accepted, that one could not be the lead of all sampling sessions. The synergies of such a mixed group, far exceeded that of 10 frozen fish producters standing side by side at a tradeshow with the same stories.

Team SIMMERING COPENHAGEN facilitated a twist to the story and the pitch of the visiting brands. We have activated our network, opened doors and been setting up meetings and gatherings.

All in all to ensure, the visiting brands would leave with a suitcase full of new knowledge, new contacts, new unique feedbacks to their pitch. Hopefully also with a burning desire to come back and add more bricks to secure Copenhagens unique status as a food capital of the world.

The local food scene and its players/partners are unique. When inside the ropes, visiting and working with the peers of the industry, you get it straight to your face in chefs language, should you be prepared for it 🫣

Our guests from SayWhen beverages - Rangeland Bison & Elk - Forbidden Distillery - Romeos Gin and Uni Fresco all received very unique and special welcome by all of the planned and spontanious stops. Remember it is all about the people, all about the network, all about the quality of the products.

This was not just a single 3 day session, as the networking sessions continues and we build upon the foundation of this trip, with a series of online calls and sample drops in coming weeks/months.

Taking the feedback from the professional end clients of top gastronomy and linking this to future sales channels and distribution partners. Partners who normally primarily looks only at price, partners which are a little hesitant taking in, anything new and unknown. We do not blame them? Can not blame them from thinking, if such products become a success in a new market, if you start with zero traction, zero brand awareness, zero market knowledge and zero network?

With TASTE OF CANADA Copenhagen, we wanted to elevate the first encounter normally happing at the walkway of an exhibition center and the first sample likely to be enjoyed from a plastic spoon inside a pourly lid exhibition stand. We wanted to bridge the unknown and make the product presentation to happen, in a real life setting.

Now after 3 days in town, all these 5 brands have established a local story, they pitches have evolved and they have a local network they can activate next time around.

They can answer YES, when asked, if anyone here have tasted their products. On top of that they leave having received positive statements from some of the best and most respected people in the industry. Having that on their "trophy walls" is a winner.

If you thought the Canadian story was all about Maple syrup and ice hockey, then this initiative proved, it is so much more. Surely the perception by the peers of the Copenhagen food scene, now also includes craft sprits, bison meat, organic chai and red Sea Urchin caviar as part of the Maple Leaf brand 🍁.

From here on it will be all about the execution - remember execution eats strategy for breakfast

Timing is everything and new tricks of the trade will surface, when you open your network and the attitude of LETS PLAY. This is exactly what happened, when the distillers talked distilling at Copenhagen Distillery. Chris from SayWhen and the bartenders made it to the bar for some testing and instantly connected.

5 minutes later a new signature drinks was served and a new story was added to the coming pitch presentation with bartenders back in North America.

Stay tuned to the Copenhagen Distillery SoMe channel for a video of this new cocktail creation.

The regenerative Bison meat from the wide open Canadian fields made it to the premiere location of anything steak in Copenhagen. A cooking session with the MASH Steak House chefs team and management trying all the cuts and all the inhouse sauces was a success - prepare for more news about upcoming specials to the MASH menu with a Canadian background.

Michael Museth is the man behind Folkets Madhus as well as the Butchers Manifesto. A very relevant talk and session with Rangeland Bison about the future of meat and how this should/could/would be part of the future plate. How to communicate the regenerative focus and how the nutricious levels of Bison meat is just different by beef and other large animals.

Stay tuned for more TASTE OF CANADA, as the teams will be back - the story continues.